Current Developments in North America Brian E. Sullivan Alberta Department of Economic Development Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

The term "light rail transit" (LRT) means different vest in light rail and not all places that install things to different people. Unlike the various mono­ LRT will have a rapidly growing information sector, rails and "people movers,• LRT is not a proprietary but the three areas in which light rail can deliver mode with a clearly spelled out design patent. so well (low-cost capacity, service quality, envi­ Hence, the range of meanings. This paper provides a ronmental appeal) are assuming an increased impor­ "snapshot• of the current status of light rail proj­ tance in any decision to invest as well as in subse­ ects in North America. It is purposefully broad in quent design activities. Decision makers react not its approach and includes systems with the most so­ only to the benefits that can be provided by a phisticated technological advances. At the same facility or service but also to cost. Here time, it acknowledges that LRT's historical roots LRT can perform especially well because design stan­ lie in the rural tramways and light railways of dards can vary from the simplest to the most elabo­ 19th-century Britain and other European countries as rate, depending on the traffic to be handled, pref­ well as urban streetcar networks on both sides of erences of the designers, and capital and operating the Atlantic. These systems were characterized by cost trade-offs. Furthermore, as techniques are re­ simpler infrastructure than that found with conven­ learned in this once-forgotten mode and as technol­ tional railways. Rolling stock was capable of easy ogy is transferred from elsewhere, the opportunities operation in or alongside city streets and, when on for cost reduction improve. its own right-of-way, could cope with sharp curves Physical characteristics of a mode provide the and gradients and lightweight structures. The notion fundamental definition of how well it should perform that the "light" in light rail transit refers to in­ in a given situation, but institutional factors will frastructure is the definitional principle used in mask or enhance the results. Aside from such consid­ this paper. It is this element, and the correspond­ erations as the operating efficiency of the proposed ing wide variety of options available to the design­ carrier, there are more subtle human factors at work: ers, that offers North American cities the promise of cost-effective rail transit. • Confusion about how to treat infrastructure costs has caused more than one study to assume that WHY LIGHT RAIL? have no infrastructure cost but to fully charge an LRT alternative for its ; The North American economy has been going through an • A transit authority that operates solely extended period of structural change as the natural buses will find itself with a built-in lobby among resources sector has increased in stature, as new its operating and maintenance professionals to re­ technologies have overtaken the old in manufactur­ main with that mode; and ing, and as the professional or • information" ser­ • Engineers who are used to designing freeways vices sector (e.g., finance, marketing, research, may tend to propose LRT lines with an extensive media, head offices) has expanded rapidly. amount of structures and "high" geometric standards The growth in professional services is signifi­ whether the specifics of the application make such cant because (a) these activities tend to cluster approaches essential or not (why incur the expense and (b) there is a strong desire for an attractive of articulated capable of operating on steep environment. These two elements can be viewed as grades and on sharp curves if the infrastructure is providing an impetus for new investment in downtown designed with a maximum gradient of 2 percent and areas, which generally offer the best clustering with 1,000-ft curves?). possibilities in an urban area and which usually possess an abundance of interesting architecture and New approaches to financing systems are appearing natural features laid out in a fashion amenable to as well as technological advances. An increasingly walking. popular technique is to obtain a contribution from These are all conditions well suited to LRT. the private sector for a section of line or a spe­ Increased clustering poses a demand for higher cific facility. Dallas had a piece of right-of-way capacity transport, and service quality is important offered by business people for an LRT network. Ed­ to those working in the information sector. LRT can monton has had a developer contribute to the cost of be designed to fit gently into a downtown setting extending its Northeast line from Belvedere to without taking much land or throwing up barriers. Clareview. Orlando, Florida (which ultimately Indeed, it can become a feature of landscape design changed from LRT to guided rubber-tire technology), in its own right, setting a special tone for a city. has received private money to build its first sec­ Not all growing downtown areas will elect to in- tion of line.

3 4 TRB State-of-the-Art Report 2

CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS IN LIGHT RAIL Sacramento is beginning with a two-line system that totals 18.3 miles in length. Due to open in This section deals with present-day developments in late 1986 or early 1987, it features a downtown urban LRT systems in the United States and Canada. on K Street. 'l'Wenty-six Duewag type U2 : Information was obtained from a survey of 46 transit cars are on order from Siemens-Allis. properties and planning authorities conducted in Santa Clara County has a 21-mile system under early 1985, supplemented as appropriate from other construction: this system will link San Jose with sources. The population surveyed was compiled from a other cities in the "Silicon Valley• area of the San list provided by the American Public Transit Associ­ Francisco Bay Area peninsula. Phase 1 is expected to ation (APTA) of organizations involved in LRT. The be completed by late 1987, and the entire line, in­ data are generally effective March 31, 1985, and de­ cluding a downtown transit mall, is to be ready for scribe new lines, extensions, and renovations to customers by Septembe•r 1988. On a portion of the lines or cars (rebuilding or replacement). In­ downtown San Jose trackage vintage will be formation is also provided on the status of the ac­ operated as a central business district shuttle. tivity: planning, design and construction, and re­ Fifty six-axle cars are being acquired from the cently inaugurated service. Only additions to, or Urban Transportation Development Corporation (UTDC), improvements of, systems are included: data on pre­ Ltd. , in Ontario. The expected cost of the system, existing situations are not discussed. in 1985 dollars, is $414 million. Possible exten­ At the time of the survey, some jurisdictions sions c1re being studied, including one running were in the midst of preliminary studies comparing northeast to link the Santa Clara system with Bay light rail with other possible im­ Area (BART). provements. Examples include Austin, Texas: Oklahoma Los Angeles is implementing a 17-mile LRT line in City, Oklahoma; and Contra Cos ta County, California. the median of the cross town Cent ury freeway with a Others have proceeded beyond this initial stage and 2-mile extension beyond to the high technology em­ information about them is given in the tables. These ployment area of El Segundo. Design work is now jurisdictions are doing detailed planning; have pro­ under way for portions of the line and the 22 cars ceeded to design and construction; or have recently involved are expected to begin operation in 7 or 8 opened a new line, an extension, or a renovated line. years. A second line, Los Angeles to Long Beach, is described in the section on . San Francisco has a number of improvements and Western United States extensions planned or about to proceed: • Extension of the "J Church" LRT line by 2. 3 Portland, Sacramento, Santa Clara, Los Angeles, San miles of street running in the Mission District Francisco, and San Diego have under design or con­ (construction funds to be expended next year) 1 struction new lines or extensions (Table 1). • Underground turnaround at the Embarcadero In 1986 Portland will open a 15-mile line that station to improve capacity and reliability (about will run east of the central business district to to enter environmental impact statement and final the suburb of Gresham. It features downtown street design stage) 1 trackage 1 shared right-of-way with a reconstructed • TWo miles of new track to link the Embarca­ freeway; a reserved section in an arterial street: dero station with the Southern Pacific depot and the and, at the outer end, the use of the independent 195-acre Mission Bay urban development will operate alignment of a former electric line. primarily on the surface with four stops (planning) 1 TWenty-six new cars have been acquired from Bom­ • Market Street to Fisherman's Wharf via Em­ bardier and, in addition, some historic cars will be barcadero streetcar line, using a mix of PCCs, Mel- LIVU.Lll~ semiopeu-type cacs , and historic trams (plan- line (Lloyd Center to downtown). ning).

TABLE 1 LRT in the Western United States

New Design Line and Recently Renewal Renewal or No. Cost Plan- Construe- lnaugu- of of Exten- of ($ mil- City ning tion rated Line Cars sion Miles Lines Cars lions) Remarks

San Francisco X X 2.3 J extension. Embarcadero subterranean loop is about to enter final design X X 2 Building to SP depot X X Market to Fisherman's Wharf via Embarcadero Sacramento X X 18.3 2 26 131.0 Opens late 1986 or early 1987 Denver X X IO I Fix~trolleybus tunnel con- vertible to LRT Seattle waterfront X X 2 2 'PvtPnc.1-inn n.p"'"" 1 OR"7 San Diego X X 4.5 Euclid line X X 2 Two new lines plus extension of Euclid Portland X X 15 I 26 3 10 Opens September 1986 Santa Clara X X 20 I 50 414 LA "Century" X X 17 22 133" Due to open with freeway in 1992- 1~~3 Dallas X X 160 523 3,583" Minneapolis X X 10 Would include stubs of two other cor- ridor lines St. Louis X X 18.6 30

al 985 dollars. Light Rail Developments in North 1'.merica 5

San Diego is enjoying the success of its first eluding two short sections of other corridors out of line, opened in 1981, south to San Ysidro and the downtown Minneapolis, which would have through­ Mexican border. It is currently building to Euclid, worked services to St. Paul. the first 4.5-mile stage of its eastern line. Street Kansas City has recently begun an alignment study running and railway rights-of-way figure in this for two LRT corridors each 10 miles long and paral­ route that will ultimately extend to El Cajon. Plan­ lel to each other. One is located within a proposed ning work has identified two other corridors. freeway and the other employs, in part, a right-of­ Seattle has completed analysis work for a trol­ way from the days of the Country Club Plaza line. leybus subway that can be converted at a later time st. Louis has identified for early action an to LRT. It also has plans to extend its present 18.6-mile line that would link the Lambert-St. Louis waterfront streetcar line to increase riding poten­ International , the McDonnell-Douglas Corpo­ tial, reaching the Space Needle to the north and the ration, the University of Missouri, the Washington King Dome and the Amtrak station to the south. University Medical Center, downtown St. Louis, and Denver, Kansas City, St. Louis, Houston, Dallas, (across the Mississippi River) East st. Louis. and Minneapolis are all actively planning LRT. Den­ ver, Houston, and Dallas have geographically compre­ hensive plans that include a mixture of LRT and ­ Eastern United States ways. Denver has produced a plan providing for an ex­ Renovation has been more of a factor east of the tensive network of busways plus a single, close-in Mississippi than in the West (Table 2). Philadelphia "guideway transit" line. has replaced the bulk of its rolling stock in one Houston has evaluated a number of busway and LRT 112-car order from Kawasaki (plus 29 cars for sub­ combinations. Public comment thus far has favored an urban "Red Arrow" lines), but it is proceeding step­ option with a central light rail loop plus key ra­ wise with other refurbishing. New stops have just dial lines that total 75 miles. Bus infrastructure been opened and several LRT subway stations are be­ would also be built. ing reconstructed. Dallas envisions completion of a 160-mile network Pittsburgh's 10.5-mile project encompasses almost of LRT by the year 2010 at a capital cost of $3,583 half of the system's 22-mile LRT network and in­ million (1982 dollars). An eventual fleet of 523 is cludes a new downtown subway, a tunnel in suburban thought to be needed. In concert with the light rail Mount Lebanon, a new maintenance facility, and a program will be a restructuring of the bus system general rehabilitation of surface track. Fifty-five along timed-transfer focal point principles. The new six-axle LRTs have been acquired from Siemens­ resulting metropolitan cobweb of routes will have 21 Duewag and a program of major reconstruction of 45 major transfer nodes. PCCs is under way. Kansas City, St. Louis, and Minneapolis (with St. Cleveland has completed its renovation of the Paul) are focusing on specific corridors and have Shaker Heights LRT line, including new track and both urban development and traffic issues in mind. power distribution, revised stations, and 48 new Both Kansas City and St. Louis plan to make use of Breda articulated light rail vehicles. These cars redundant railway facilities. Rapid downtown growth are similar to the Tokyu high platform cars deliv­ has been a factor prompting consideration of LRT in ered for the former Cleveland Transit System two of the three cities, and a desire for same has "rapid." Both types are maintained in the same fa­ fueled interest in the third. cility and can be coupled for push-tow capability. A The Minneapolis-st. Paul Regional Transit Board proposal is currently under consideration for devel­ has identified three significant corridors opment of the Van Aken terminus site, which would for LRT and has selected the University Avenue involve a 20-story building and an automobile park­ alignment as its priority for action. This was the ing structure. region's major transit spine in the days of street­ Newark has a 4. 3-mile system, built partly in cars because it links the downtowns of the two prin­ subway, partly in cut, and partly on its own surface cipal cities. The line would be 10 miles long, in- alignment. A $20-million rehabilitation has involved

TABLE 2 LRT in the Eastern United States

New Design Line and Recently Renewal Renewal or No. Cost Plan- Construe- Inaugu- of of Exten- of ($ mil- City ning lion rated Line Cars sion Miles Lines Cars lions) Remarks

Columbus X X 10.6 22 132 Buffalo X X 4.8 27 Opening May 1985 Cleveland X X X (+1.2) New car shops open. Station site development at Van Aken proposed New Jersey X X Rights-of-way being protected for (Hudson River busway and LR T across from Manhattan) Newark X X X 4.3 30 22 Philadelphia X X 112 New car shop at Woodland under construction; new cars received 1982; station renewal under way Pittsburgh X X X 10.5 4 55 559 July 1985 downtown subway (+45 opens; 1986 full renovated system rehab) opens Boston X X 8 50 (+28) Detroit X Also has line in downtown with historic cars New York X Crosstown 4 2nd Street 6 TRB State-of-the-Art Report 2

station refurbishing, reconstruction of the track structure, and overhead current distribution. The fleet of 24 PCCs has been put into mint condition, There are LRT activities in five Canadian cities and ceramic tile murals in the stations have been (Table 3) • .. restored. The downtown terminus and maintenance fa­ Calgary has just opened its second line, to the cility is beneath the restored Penn Station, an in­ northeast, and plans to open its third line, to the tercity rail and bus facility. northwest, in the autumn of 1987. Ridership on the LRT activity in New Jersey is not limited to New­ initial line, opened in 1981, is running at about ark. On the western shore of the Hudson River oppo­ 40,000 per day. The system has its downtown spine site Manhattan there is considerable developer entirely on-street, making Calgary the first city on interest in urban rejuvenation. This in turn is the continent to break the decades-long taboo prompting consideration of LRT and busways with the against building street track for new systems. associated protection of rights-of-way. Edmonton, the first North American city in post­ In New York City a proposal for a surface car war years to build a new LRT system from the ground line on 42nd street is receiving considerable public up, has begun soil testing on its south LRT route discussion because of its value both as a quality that runs from the central business district across transport service and as a stimulus to renewal of the North Saskatchewan River valley to the Univer­ this historically significant street. The Hudson sity (1990) and the University Farm (1992). Because River terminus of such a line is viewed as a poooi­ most of the line is in a bored subway, staging ot ble docking area for a proposed ferry to New Jersey. investment has resulted in a single-track line ex­ In Boston 50 new light rail vehicles, with cept at stations and on the surface or bridges. chopper DC controls by Westinghouse, are on order has nearly finished work on its 13.8- from Kinki-Sharyo. A number of extensions to mile rail transit line and has already announced a existing LRT lines plus one long interurban route 4 .4-mile extension. Some observers believe that the are planned as shown in the following table. system's use of a linear induction motor, with the consequent inability to run in a street setting, places it outside of the LRT field. Others disagree. Length However, as a public transport system it is more Route (miles) like LRT than any other category and thus is in­ Lechmere-Medford 3.5 cluded here. Dudley Square-Downtown Boston 2.2 Because it is entirely grade separated and Green line extension to Watertown 2.3 equipped with full automatic operation, the Vancouver rail transit line offered interesting op­ portunities for a complete overhaul of operating None of the mileage is currently under construction. practice. In place of a driver, each train in the The question of finance is still being pursued. base and evening period has a crew member who is Buffalo provides the one eastern example of a qualified to new-from-the-ground-up offering. Opening this year, it operates in subway through residential areas and • Manually operate the train (the first trip in the suburbs. In the central business district it out is to be manually driven), operates on a transit mall using 27 four-axle LRVs • Provide information (and passive security) manufactured by Tokyu Car in concert with Westing­ while walking through the traini house. An interesting feature is the use of the • Check receipts (self-service fare) 1 and former Lackawanna railway station as the new LRT • Make simple repairs (stuck doors, jammed fare m~~hino~i ~nn ~ho 1;k~\ . --J-~------IUG.1.11\..CIJQll"-'IC' ~---ua.o.11,i;; • In Columbus a 10.6-mile line in the city and county North Corridor is under study. The expected During peak periods when extra are added, capital cost would be $159 million for an alignment these operating personnel would work two or three between two major railroads and a downtown transit trains on a rotating basis. The line is scheduled to mall. open in time for Expo '86 in Vancouver.

TABLE 3 LRT in Canada

New Design Line and Recently Renewal Renewal or No. Cost Plan- Construe- Inaugu- of of Exten- of ($ mil- City rung tion rated Line Can don Miles T.ines f:ars Jinns) Remarks

Calgary X X X 6.2 2 218 First line opened 1981; northeast (+3.4) (+105) line opened 27 April 1985; north- west line (parentheses) opens fall 1987 Edmonton X X 2.5 37 173 Completion to university farm ex- (on hand) pected by 1992; dollars shown are for single-track subway Vancouver X X 13.8 114 Linear induction motor; fully grade (+4.4) separated; 4-axle cars ; 4.4 addi- ,._;--~1 -..:1~., ,...... "u".:I \. .. VJ.U,U, UUJ.'-'"' ... ,t't'J.U,._.M. Toronto Scarborough X 4 24 Studies are under way of possible Waterfront X 3.S busways, LRT, or conventional (and Spadina) subway on 3 alignments; Scar- X 52 borough line uses linear induction Montreal X 10 50% surface, 50% subway Light Rail Developments in North America 7

Toronto had its inaugural run of its Scarborough area. The cable cars are beyond the scope of this rail transit line in March of 1985. Although it uses paper, but it is worth noting that New Orleans' line the same technology as the Vancouver system, conven­ will be undergoing a revitalization of track, vehi­ tional operating practice was retained. A driver is cles, and maintenance facilities, More than 21,000 in charge of each train. The Toronto Transit Commis­ passengers are carried each day on a fleet of 35 sion has plans for an at-grade LRT line to link the Thomas-built four-axle cars dating from 1922-1924 area around Un ion Station with the rapidly develop­ (22 are required for the morning peak). The line is i ng waterfront . Th i s l ine would run west erly about 1 6.6 miles long, most of it in a reserved median. mi1e t o Spadi na and, i n time, be extended nor t h as a In Seattle and Detroit streetcar lines have been streetcar on Spadina Avenue to connect with the established, tracks and all, purely for the pleasure Bloor-Danf or th subway line. This line has yet to re­ that they bring to an urban area. Seattle's current ceive Metro Counc il funding. Three other corridors transit plans include extensions to the waterfront are being studied for busway, LRT, or regular subway: trolley, Route 99, to enhance its value as a regular transit route. In Lowell, Massachusetts, the Na­ • Eglinton Avenue west of the Spadina subway tional Park Service has established a streetcar sys­ line, tem as part of the historic revival of this New En­ • East-west lines on a Sheppard-Finch or hydro gland industrial town. right-of-way connecting with the Yonge subway and an In Edmonton and Calgary, restored wooden four­ extended Spadina subway, and axle cars are used to provide access to major urban • A north-south downtown relief line located parks within which automobiles are not permitted. east of the Yonge subway. Edmonton has plans to construct a line from its cur­ rent historic operation through a number of river At present, Toronto has 52 articulated LRVs on order valley parks into the downtown. The first section of from UTDC-Canadian Car for fleet upgrading and has this multiyear plan has been funded. an option to buy 12 more. Montreal is well known for its breakthroughs in station design in the mid-1960s on its metro, which Di esel and Diesel-Electr i c Light Rail Veh i cles proved that subways could be attractive places for people. The provincial government (which provides For some jurisdictions, the cost of electrification 100 percent financing for new systems) has under­ is a concern, especially for thinly trafficked taken a feasibility study for metro line 7 that has stretches of line. The followi ng two types of equip­ shown that a light rail approach would be the most ment lend themselves to such situations: feasible. This line is envisioned as having 14 sta­ tions along its 10-mile length, and it would operate • Linke-Hoffman-Busch has developed a diesel­ half of its distance in subway and half on surface. electric six-axle articulated light rail vehicle Part of the line would serve a corridor that some (LRV) • Operating in the suburbs of Hamburg on the years back had a Canadian National Railways commuter AKN line, and in Austria on the interurban Graz­ operation. Discussions are continuing with the Mon­ Koflacherbahn, these cars are much like the six-axle treal Urban Community (local government) on this electric cars currently running in the United States subject. and Canada. They have a full set of standard transit DC propulsion and controls plus an under-floor diesel-electric generator. This permits either mixed VARIATIONS ON A THEME mode operation or the ability to function now with­ out wires and convert later at a low cost. The foregoing discussion has devoted considerable • Leyland is offering a two-axle diesel­ time to the subject of modern electric LRT within hydraulic derived from its British urban cities. Action has also spread out onto a number of motor bus, the nLeyland National. n Its low purchase fronts and further elaborations are in the wings. price could make it attract i ve for certai n LRT oper­ ations and it is currently touring North America, including a stint on the former interurban Youngs­ Historic Services town and Southern.

Some historic services exist because the character An 18-mile diesel LRT line is being planned for of the lines in question remained constant over many Norfolk-Virginia Beach, Virginia. Rapid growth in years. San Francisco's cable cars offer one such ex­ the former as a destination combined with residen­ ample, the St. Charles streetcar line in New Orleans tial growth in the latter provides ample demand. A another. Both are busy transit facilities and play former electric interurban line that was converted an essential role in the cities that they serve. In to railbus (and ultimately became freight only) of­ other situations, historic car lines have been fers an attractive right-of-way. As mentioned in the opened recently to serve a park or other place with interurban section, diesel LRT is being considered a historic theme. Lowell, Calgary, and Edmonton as an option to replace conventional commuter train offer examples. Finally, historic cars may be oper­ service from Oyster Bay to Mineola on Long Island, ated on existing lines as an attraction in them­ selves or on lines constructed for this purpose. In Philadelphia, San Francisco, Toronto and Interurbans (soon) Portland and San Jose, historic cars are op­ erated in public service providing, for the most lines serving the countryside, and part, regular per capita service (in Toronto use is linking cities and towns, grew rapidly in extent made of the extensive track network to operate a during the latter half of the last century and the sightseeing route). As noted earlier, San Francisco early decades of this century. In countries such as plans a new line to Fisherman's Wharf using vintage the United States, Canada, and the Federal Republic equipment as well as PCCs. of Germany, these lines were either abandoned or The San Francisco cable cars and the St. Charles absorbed into main-line railways. In and line in New Orleans are examples of long-standing France, they have been organized into national sys­ regular services that have become historic landmarks tems (the Vicinal and Departmental systems, respec­ in their own right, adding character and flair to an tively), albeit with much retrenchment in mileage. 8 TRB State-of-the-Art Report 2

In countries such as Switzerland and , many rail line that would operate through downtown Hemp­ have been continuously upgraded and modernized and stead. Diesel LRT is thought to be a less costly function today as high-quality, regional electric technology for this line. Implementation by 1989 railways (the Bern-Solothurn and the Kinki-Nippon would be coordinated with New York State DOT's are examples). Mineola grade crossing elimination project, which In the United States, there are three such opera­ would save $10 million. Successful operation is de­ tions and plans to establish new services, some on pendent on transfer of the service from a commuter corridors once served by interurbans and some as re­ railroad institution to one that functions under placements for traditional commuter railways: transit operating rules. • In the San Francisco Bay Area the Metropoli­ • The Chicago, South Shore and South Bend ex­ tan Transportation Commission is undertaking a study tends 90 miles between its named end points. East of of options for the upgrading of the 45-mile San Gary, Indiana, it is a low-frequency rural line, Francisco-San Jose line. One of the popular with middle class families in spite of a three options is the conversion of the line to an more frequent bus service on freeways. As interurban LRT type of service. it approaches the commuter shed of Chicago, it takes on the character of a busy commuter line, although In Canada all of the one-time interurban lines it still possesses a mixed-traffic street alignment have been abandoned or are used only for freight. An through Michigan City. Delivery has been complete<'! interesting breakthrouqh, however, is the program of on an order of 44 cars, to replace prewar equipment. Ontario's GO Transit to build altogether new inter­ • Also operating out of Chicago is the 5-mile urban lines where none existed before. Known as "GO­ inner portion of the former Chicago, North Shore and ALRT, • the network as planned will consist of four Milwaukee. Linking some northern suburbs of Chicago sections as shown in the following table. with that city's rapid transit system, the "Skokie Swift" uses 12 high platform cars, 4 of them articu­ Length in lated. A program is currently under way to replace Section km (miles) these with married pairs, rebuilt from existing ur­ Pickering-Oshawa 25 (15.6) ban cars. Oakville-Hamilton 34 (21.3) • A re-equipping program has also recently been Central Lakeshore (Oak- completed on Philadelphia's suburban division ("Red ville-downtown Toronto­ Arrow Lines") of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Tran­ Pickering) 68 (42.5) sit Authority. Twenty-nine double-ended cars pro­ Northern section (Oak­ vided by Kawasaki were supplied to the Media and ville-Toronto-Inter­ Sharon Hill lines in 1981-1982. The high geometric national Airport-Scar­ standard Norristown line continues to use its 1934 borough-Pickering) 100 (62.5) "Bullet• high-speed cars. Total 227 (141.9) • California's last interurban to carry passen­ gers ended its service between Long Beach and Los The total cost of the first two sections is $690 Angeles in 1961. Current plans of the Los Angeles million and includes planning work on other sec­ County Transportation Commission include reinaugura­ t ions. Maximum loads of 15,000 passengers per peak­ tion of this route using the original Pacific Elec­ hour direction are foreseen for the planning horizon tric right-of-way where available, as well as a new year of 2021 on the Lakeshore section, and 17,000 alignment in subway under Flower Street, to access passengers per peak-hour direction are forecast by the Los Angeles city center. Twenty-one miles in GO Transit for the northern section. Trains are to length, this line will require 32 six-axle cars to be composed of eight-axle married pairs, capable of begin service, planned for 1989. The $595 million sustained running at 120 kmihr (75 mphj, on steer­ (1985 dollars) cost is being paid for from Proposi­ able trucks. Line voltage is to be 25,000 volts AC, tion A funds, and the project is in the final design with 600 volts DC at the . phase. • The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Author­ ity has plans for a 28-mile LRT line from the Boston South Station to Scituate. This route would serve CONCLUSION the general territory of the Old Colony Line. Con­ siderations to be dealt with before proceeding in­ In the past decade light rail transit has grown rap­ clude the status of this interurban light rail line idly as a mode of urban transport, both in terms of vis-a-vis traditional commuter rail. planning interest and in the number of jurisdictions • A study conducted by the Long Island Rail making investments. Road has recommended the replacement of diesel­ LRT, with its range of design standards, is hauled commuter trains with LRT on its 14.5-mile ideally positioned with respect to the public trans­ Oyster Bay-Mineola line. This is viewed as less ex­ portation needs of communities in the economy of the pensive than continuing with the traditional rail­ future. Its mix of service quality, cost, and envi­ road service: it also has the potential or increas­ ronmental and design opportunity make it suitable ing ridership to more than the present 5,700 per for a wide variety of applications between the auto­ day. Also being studied is a connection of the mobile on one hand and "heavy• rapid transit on the Oyster Bay and West Hempstead branches using a light other.